Skip to main content
MCHS_Logo_2024_BLACK
  • Patient Portal
  • Pay Bill Online
  • Request an Appointment
    • Services

      Featured Services

      • Cardiology (Heart)
      • Gastroenterology & Hepatology (Digestive Care)
      • Neurosurgery
      • Obstetrics & Gynecology (OB-GYN)
      • Oncology (Cancer)
      • Orthopedics & Orthopedic Surgery (Bones)
      • Primary Care
      • Spine Care
      • Sports Medicine
      • Surgery
      • Urology

      View all services
    • Providers
    • Locations

      Minnesota

      • Albert Lea
      • Austin
      • Belle Plaine
      • Blooming Prairie
      • Butterfield
      • Caledonia
      • Cannon Falls
      • Fairmont
      • Faribault
      • Lake City
      • Lake Crystal
      • Mankato
      • Montgomery
      • New Prague
      • Northfield
      • Owatonna
      • Plainview
      • Red Wing
      • Rochester
      • Sherburn
      • St. James
      • St. Peter
      • Waseca
      • Waterville
      • Wells
      • Zumbrota

      Wisconsin

      • Arcadia
      • Barron
      • Bloomer
      • Chetek
      • Chippewa Falls
      • Eau Claire
      • Ellsworth
      • Glenwood City
      • Holmen
      • La Crosse
      • Menomonie
      • Mondovi
      • Onalaska
      • Osseo
      • Prairie du Chien
      • Rice Lake
      • Sparta
      • Tomah

      Iowa

      • Decorah

      View map
    • Classes/Events
    • Blog
    • Wellness
    • Referrals

    Recent Posts

    • Charlie Pierce
      Patient Stories
      The sound of success: How improved hearing aids career change
      May 01, 2025
    • Produce aisle shopping
      Speaking of Health
      Want to reduce chronic inflammation? Start with your grocery list
      April 24, 2025
    • Know Your Numbers Cholesterol
      Speaking of Health
      Know your numbers: Cholesterol
      April 24, 2025
    Featured Topics
    • Behavioral Health
    • Cancer
    • Children's Health (Pediatrics)
    • Exercise and Fitness
    • Heart Health
    • Men's Health
    • Neurosurgery
    • Obstetrics and Gynecology
    • Orthopedic Health
    • Weight-loss (Bariatric) Surgery
    • Women's Health
    Join our email newsletter
    Patient Stories
    Friday, July 14, 2017

    A 'miracle cure' for plantar fasciitis

    Topics in this Post
    • Foot Health

    gayle1Austin, Minnesota, resident Gayle Faber, 69, suffered through plantar fasciitis — inflammation or damage to the plantar fascia, the ligament tissue that connects the heel to toes — for several years, enduring the stabbing heel pain that’s associated with it. “I had lived with it for at least 15 years,” says Faber. “I’m a very active walker, and I tried to wear supportive tennis shoes all the time, even first thing in the morning, as one physician suggested, but the pain kept coming back.”

    But five years ago, Faber came across what some would call a miracle cure: micro-invasive ultrasonic tendon treatment.

    Darryl Barnes, M.D., a musculoskeletal and sports medicine physician at Mayo Clinic Health System in Austin, and Jay Smith, M.D., a physiatrist and sports medicine physician at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, collaborated to invent this new treatment to remove damaged tendon and ligament tissue. 

    “Anywhere you see tendinosis, which involves micro-tears and/or degradation of tendons, ultrasound-guided, ultrasonic debridement treatment is highly effective,” says Dr. Barnes. The device creates ultrasonic (high-frequency sound waves) energy at the tip of the instrument, which removes damaged tissue that is subsequently sucked away from the healthy tissue via catheter. 

    plantar faciitis image“This is a great option for patients with tendinosis issues, such as rotator cuff tendonitis and plantar fasciitis. We treat patients in Austin and they are able to go home the same day,” says Dr. Barnes. “Mayo Clinic is a unique environment that allowed Dr. Smith and I to test new ideas and create new products for our patients quickly.”  

    Dr. Barnes treated Faber with this revolutionary ultrasonic technology, which he says is being used at medical institutions around the country, including Mayo Clinic Health System in Austin, and the results are astounding. “It was wonderful,” says Faber. “There was no anesthesia needed, and the treatment worked immediately. I have had no pain at all since the procedure.”

    Topics in this Post
    • Foot Health

    Related Posts

    Rolling foot bottom on ball Heel pain? It might be plantar fasciitis
    Showshoeing Ankle instability causes and fixes
    bruner_small Foot surgery success for Turtle Lake woman

    Stay Connected

    • Contact Us
    • Notice of Nondiscrimination
    • Notice of Privacy Practices
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • About Us
    • Careers
    • Volunteer
    • Donate
    • For Patients & Visitors
    • Financial Assistance
    • Price Transparency
    • Community Resources
    • Mayo Clinic Connect
    • For Medical Professionals
    • Press Room
    • Mayo Clinic
    • Manage Cookie
    © 2018 - 2025 Mayo Clinic Health System